Forever Yours
by mamaXunicorn
Summary: Emma refuses to let Neal go and saves both of them from the portal and has to rush to save his life all while dealing with the feelings she has for him.


"It's over." Emma said, pointing the gun at Tamara.

"No," Tamara replied from her place on the floor, reaching into her pocket and pulling out one of the beans. "It's not."

She tossed the bean in their direction and Emma gasped as she took a step back, watching as the bean glowed a bright green and then started to open into a portal. She quickly grabbed onto a metal pipe, already feeling the portal start to suck her in.

Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Neal slowly crawling away from the portal.

She gripped onto the pipe tighter, yelping as the force of suction even began to pull the pipe off the wall.

"Emma!" Suddenly Neal's voice was right behind her and the portal kept sucking her in. She had to jump away from it now and somehow she knew Neal would be there to catch her.

She let go of the pipe and within a second Neal's arms were around her, pulling her away from the portal. "I got you."

She held onto him for a few seconds and then pulled away remembering he was hurt. She quickly glanced down to see blood soaking his shirt and looked up at him in concern. "We've got to get you to a hospital."

Suddenly there was a loud crack as the floorboards beneath them gave way and they started to slip into the portal. Emma grabbed tightly onto his hand as he fell, holding on tightly to the floorboards with her other hand. "Neal!" She cried after him, looking down just to make sure he was still there. The portal was strong though and it kept pulling away at him.

"Emma! You can't hold both of us!" Neal yelled back at her, reaching his other hand desperately to one of the loose floorboards.

"I'm not letting go of you!" She couldn't lose him. Not again.

"You have to." He answered, trying to fight against the immense pain in his side to hold on as long as he could.

"Neal, you're shot!" She cried desperately. "If you fall through that portal you're going to die no matter what world you land in!"

"I know but Emma, Henry needs you." He winced again, his voice straining against the pain. "He can't lose both of us. Don't make him grow up like we did."

"Please don't let go." Her voice broke, falling into a whimper, already feeling his grip loosening.

Ever since he came crashing back into her life, she'd been denying to herself how much him being back meant to her. She denied her feelings because he was engaged, because she could not give into the thought that she still had feelings for the man that broke her heart.

That talk on the beach where he apologized, told her he wanted to look for her, thought of her every day, regretted what he had done to her every day, it awakened something in her.

And now that she was staring down at him, so close to losing him again, she realized she couldn't let him go, she couldn't lose him. Now that Neal was back in her life she could not let him leave again.

"I need you." She admitted and she did, she did need him. She once lived eleven years without him and she could not live without him again. His presence in her life filled a hole in her heart that was missing when he left the first time. It brought along hurt and the pains of the past but she needed him there.

A tiny sob broke past her lips, tears stinging her eyes as she finally admitted to herself and him in the same moment what she had been afraid to for the past eleven years. "I love you."

She had to tell him even if he was truly over her. If these were truly going to be her last moments with Neal, she had to let him know she loved him.

He was silent for a few seconds and then he looked directly into her eyes seriously. "I love you too."

She let out a relieved sob and smiled, despite the situation. She never thought she'd her those words from him again. For so long she had convinced herself that Neal didn't love her, that he had never loved her and even after he came back and he was engaged, there was that doubt. But those feelings were still there, she still loved him, and he still loved her and now she knew for sure she could not let him go.

"No!" She cried as Neal's hand began to slip from hers and she tightened her grip and if she weren't so determined to get him out of that portal, she would be concerned about breaking his hand.

"Emma..." Neal was pleading with her now and that only reinforced the thought that she was not leaving here without him.

"You have to let me go."

"I'm not letting you go!" She told him fiercely and then screamed as the floorboard she was holding onto cracked a little looser and they slipped further into the portal.

Her nails dug into the wood and she could feel the splinters digging into her skin. Her pain didn't matter, the straining of her muscles didn't matter, all that mattered was rescuing Neal.

Emma took a deep breath and concentrated all her strength on the arm that was holding them up. She was a strong woman, she had faced a dragon, she had climbed a giant bean stalk to then face a giant. She could rescue the man she loved from this portal.

Gritting her teeth together, she closed her eyes tightly and slowly began to pull herself up. Every muscle in her body was screaming at her but she pushed past it, her other hand still securely wrapped around Neal's.

"Neal, hold on." She whispered, and she wasn't even sure if he heard it.

Once she was far enough up, she grunted as she hitched her knee up onto the floor, now using the more powerful muscles in her thighs to hoist herself up. She quickly grabbed onto a more stable piece of wood and got her another leg onto solid ground.

She breathed a small sigh of relief, knowing they were almost there but they weren't quite there yet. Neal was still dangling dangerously over the portal and the portal didn't seem to be weakening but he was. She could see the sweat on his forehead, the pain in his eyes, the weakness in his grip as he tried to hold on. "I've got you." She called down to him and pressing her knees into the floor, mustered the rest of her strength and slowly pulled him up.

Once his arms were over the floor, she scooted herself backwards, grabbing onto both his arms and pulling him up and over. She let out a cry of relief as he crawled to safety and she pulled him away from the portal, wrapping her arms around him tightly as they pressed themselves onto the floor, waiting until the portal finally closed.

The blowing, suctioning wind finally stopped as the portal closed with a large whoosh and then there was nothing but silence. Emma waited a few more long seconds before finally lifting her head and looking over to where the portal was seeing nothing but a large hole in the floor now covered by dirt.

She laughed out of simple relief, feeling the warm and solid body of Neal beside her and the portal was gone. She looked down at him and he was breathing heavily as he smiled weakly at her.

"Hey." He whispered.

"Hey." She whispered back with a smile, bringing her hand to the side of his face, almost wincing at how clammy he felt.

"You saved me."

"I guess I did."

Both of their smiles widened for a moment but as Neal tried to move he cried out in pain, closing his eyes tightly, bringing his shaking hands to his sides.

Emma frowned, her eyes widening as her eyes trailed over to his side where blood continued to soak his shirt and now his hands.

"Oh god." She whispered and pushed herself onto her knees, ripping off her coat, the walkie-talkie David gave her clattering to the floor. She gently moved Neal's hands away from the bullet wound and pressed the coat against his wound, wincing as Neal arched in pain, letting out a whimper. "I'm sorry." She whispered to him. "You're going to be alright, Neal, okay? Just hold on."

With one hand pressed against the wound, she reached for the walkie-talkie with the other. "David?" She called desperately as she held down the speaker button. "David, are you there?"

There were a few agonizing seconds of crackling white noise before she finally heard her father's voice. "Emma? What's wrong?"

"I need an ambulance down here at once. Neal's hurt." Her throat tightened as she looked down at the pale faced Neal, his breathing now shallow. "Please, call them now."

"Okay, hold on Emma." Answered David and he clicked off. She sniffed, staring down at Neal as she waited and then about thirty seconds later, David's voice was back. "Emma? They're on their way."

"Thank you." She whispered.

"What happened?" David asked.

She swallowed thickly, shaking her head slowly. "She shot him. Tamara."

"Oh my god." David muttered. "You were right."

Emma nodded to herself. "She got away, David. You have to find her."

"Alright. Emma? Don't worry, okay? Neal's going to be fine."

"Yeah." She whispered, trying to believe in that herself.

"I'll keep you posted." David clicked off again and she let the walkie fall to her lap as she reached over to wipe the sweat off his forehead and then run her fingers gently through his hair.

His head slowly turned to look at her and his eyes blinked weakly. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

She shook her head slowly. "What are you apologizing for?"

He swallowed thickly. "Tamara...I didn't...I didn't believe you."

"You had no reason to."

"I should have seen it...I should have...known..."

"It's not your fault." She whispered and smiled sadly. "Sometimes...we don't want to see whats right in front of us because it hurts too much."

He leaned into her touch as her fingers lightly caressed the side of his face. He closed his eyes for a second and for that short time Emma's heart seized and then he reopened them, his eyes meeting hers as he smiled weakly. "You're amazing, you know that?"

Emma's cheeks flushed lightly and she lifted her shoulders, biting down on her lip softly. "I...well..."

He shakily lifted his hand, using the back of his hand to gently touch the side of her face. "You are. You're the most amazing, beautiful and strongest woman I've ever met."

She looked down for a moment, her hand coming to wrap around his, not caring for a second about the blood.

"Neal..." She whispered softly.

"I meant what I said." He said hoarsely and she looked back over to him, her brow twitching and he smiled softly. "I love you."

That same relieved smile crossed her lips and she squeezed his hand, leaning into it as a lone tear escaped down her cheek. "I meant it too." She whispered, bringing his fingers to her lips and kissing his knuckles softly. "I love you, Neal."

He smiled at her and a few more tears slid helplessly down her cheeks.

It was just when she heard the sirens approaching that Neal suddenly hitched his breath, closing his eyes tightly as he squeezed her hand.

She gently ran her fingers in small circles against the back of his hand. "Hold on, Neal, they're here. You're going to be okay."

He opened his eyes weakly, letting out a few short breaths and she leaned over him. "Keep your eyes on me, Neal. Come on."

His eyes slowly moved over to her and it pained her to see his usual bright and warm eyes now dull and weak.

Behind them a few paramedics ran in but Emma refused to take her eyes off his. He was fighting a losing battle and was losing a lot of blood.

She held onto his hand until they physically forced her away from him and she shakily rose to her feet watching as they carefully moved Neal onto a stretcher.

"Emma." He called out weakly and she was instantly at his side, keeping pace with the paramedics as they carried him outside.

"I'm right here, Neal, I'm not going anywhere."

His lips twitched upward for a second before he winced in pain. They carried him onto the ambulance and Emma hopped in with them, wanting to be near his side but standing out of the way as they fixed him up with oxygen.

It was times like these she thank God Storybrooke was a small town as it only took five minutes to get back to the hospital.

They carefully unloaded him and Emma followed quickly behind as they wheeled him straight into the Emergency Room.

Dr. Whale met them inside, his eyes widening as he surveyed the damage done. He instantly recognized the man as Gold's son and the man who had saved him just that morning from an attack from Mr. Gold.

"Get him to the OR stat!" Dr. Whale ordered as the nurses took over for the paramedics and started to wheel him into the back.

Dr. Whale paused only for a second near the doors to meet Emma's concerned and panicked expression. He nodded to her confidently and then disappeared behind the doors.

Once the doors stopped swinging, Emma let out a sob, covering her mouth with her hands now stained with Neal's blood.

She eventually found herself seated in one of the chairs in the waiting room, staring at the floor blankly. She couldn't believe this was happening. She had saved him from the portal but she was still on the verge of losing him. Granted, there were a whole lot of other areas he could have gotten shot that would have been worse but he had lost a lot of blood and the bullet might have hit vital organs.

She didn't know what she'd do if she lost him. Eleven years ago was painful but this was almost worse. She didn't know what had happened to him eleven years ago and she eventually came to the conclusion that he never even cared about her. But now they had just so recently confessed their love for one another, twice, and it still wouldn't be enough to hold them together.

She bit down on her lip, blinking away the tears, cursing Neal for worming his way back into her heart.

After losing Graham she could not handle another man dying on her before they even had a chance to begin.

She used her shoulder to wipe away the tears that fell. Crying in front of Neal was one thing but crying over Neal in front of everyone was something different...something she could not allow herself to do.

After about a half an hour of mind numbing silence, Emma had enough and went to the restroom, finally letting the tears fall freely as she scrubbed the blood off her hands.

After her hands were scrubbed raw and pink she grabbed a hold of the sink and stared down at the running water, taking a few deep breaths.

_Get a hold of yourself, Emma._

She looked up into the mirror, staring back at her miserable expression, her eyes red and puffy, her cheeks pink and just a few smears of blood along the side of her face. She practically stuck her head in the sink and threw the cold water on her face over and over again until she finally calmed herself down.

She grabbed several paper towels and dried her face before examining her reflection in the mirror again. She looked back to normal, the tears and blood wiped clean away but she still looked pale and miserable. She ran her fingers through her damp hair and nodded to herself, once and for all composing herself before she went back out to the waiting room.

She paced around the room, occasionally sitting down before she got too antsy and got up again. Every once in a while she'd look over to the door hoping Whale would come out and tell her Neal was alright.

"Emma?" She jumped with a gasp and turned around to see her father walking toward her.

"David." She whispered and her eyes widened as she approached him. "Did you catch her?"

He frowned. "She disappeared, Emma. I searched everywhere."

Emma cursed under her breath and ran her hands through her hair in frustration.

"Hey," David said gently, reaching out to touch her arm. "We'll find her, Emma, I promise. She won't get away with this."

Emma nodded quietly, relaxing against her father's touch and letting out a soft sigh.

"How is he?" David asked, concerned.

Emma shrugged helplessly, once again stealing a glance towards the door. "He went into surgery about an hour ago...I haven't heard anything but he looked..." She let out a breath and looked down. "...terrible..."

David frowned heavily. He wasn't sure he even liked Neal but he hated seeing his daughter in so much emotional pain.

Hesitantly he moved his hand from her arm to her back and rubbed his hand in small, soothing circles, hoping he wasn't pushing his daughter too much. "Emma, he's going to be okay."

Emma turned a small, grateful smile to him and taking another daring step, David gently guided her to him. She only tensed for a moment before she gently rested her head on his shoulder.

Despite telling herself that she shouldn't be showing weakness, she had never had this before. She had never had her daddy's arms to curl into when she was upset and needed them. And now she did, now he was offering them to her and at this moment, when she was scared to death over the fate of Neal, she needed her Daddy.

He softly placed a kiss to the top of her head and that only brought the familiar sting of tears to her eyes. She quickly pushed them back because even though she was giving into his comfort, she refused to cry in front of him.

"Where's Mary Margaret?" She asked a few minutes later as she pulled away. She loved the attention and affection she was getting from her father, she really hadn't had that much alone time with him after the curse broke, but Mary Margaret was her best friend and she needed the support and comfort from her mother.

"She's back at the apartment with Regina." He explained.

"How is she? Regina?"

"She'll be okay." David nodded. "Mother Superior used her magic on her to heal her. She's sleeping it off but she'll be fine."

"Good." Emma whispered. "What about Henry, where is he?"

"He's with the dwarves. We thought spending time with the guys might take his mind off Regina."

Emma nodded. "So he doesn't know about Neal?"

"No." David sighed quietly. "He doesn't."

"Okay good...that's good...I don't want to worry him..." She let out a breath. "Especially because he's so worried about Regina."

"Regina is fine, and Neal is going to make it through this."

She looked up at him. "You're very optimistic."

"I have to be." He answered with a small shrug.

"The prince thing?"

He chuckled softly. "That's part of it. I always like to look to the best. It helps me stay motivated so I don't lose hope."

Emma nodded quietly. Her father, the prince, was so much different than David Nolan and she admired him so much for that.

"So don't you lose hope, Emma." He rubbed her back again and she sent him a small smile.

It was another hour and a half and Mary Margaret had joined them soon after Regina woke up and was able to be left alone. Emma sat squashed between her parents, her mother holding onto her hand wile her father's hand rested comfortingly on her knee.

They didn't talk much no matter how much Mary Margaret and David tried to distract her. Emma's eyes remained focused on that door waiting for it to open.

Finally, Dr. Whale stepped out of the doors and before he could even look around the room for her, Emma was out of the chair and walking toward him. "How is he?" She asked, holding her breath for the answer.

Dr. Whale stared at her in silence for a moment and then he smiled. "He's fine, sheriff."

Emma let out a relieved sigh and felt all the tension leave her body as her parents joined her at her side.

"The bullet luckily just missed his vital organs. He did lose a lot of blood but we were able to match his blood type and give him a transfusion. He's going to make a full recovery."

"Oh that's wonderful!" Mary Margaret grinned as she once again gripped her daughter's hand.

Emma turned to look at her with a smile and then looked back at Whale. "Thank you."

Dr. Whale nodded once with a small smile and saw the question on her face before she asked it. "We've got him in recovery and he should be awake once the last of the anesthesia wears off. You can go see him, but please don't crowd him. He's still going to be in some pain."

Mary Margaret squeezed Emma's hand with a smile. "You go, Emma. Give him our love."

"I will." Emma could not help the smile on her face as she hugged her mother and gave her father a gentle, grateful squeeze on the shoulder.

David smiled back at her and ushered her forward. Emma nodded to Dr. Whale and they walked through the doors and Dr. Whale led her to Neal's room.

She peered in through the glass, he was in a room much like David was when he was still in that coma and Neal almost looked the same. Eyes closed, laying in that bed, hooked up to a bunch of monitors. For a few long moments her eyes focused on the heart monitor and watched the beat of his heart over and over again, smiling at the fact that he was alive.

Dr. Whale soon left her alone and she slowly entered the room and approached the bed.

As she stood next to his bed just staring down at him she was incredibly relieved to see the color had returned to his face. She knew he had to be in pain or would be when he woke up but he looked so peaceful right then.

She wasn't sure how long it was going to take for the anesthesia to wear off so she just pulled over a chair to the side of his bed and slipped her hand over his and just started to talk to him.

* * *

The first thing Neal noticed upon waking was a dull, aching pain in his side that seemed to get a little worse each time he took a breath. The next thing was the slight throbbing in his head.

Opening his eyes seemed a lot harder than it should have been and when he started to flutter them open he was hit with a blinding light. He winced and shut them again, a low moan escaping his throat.

And then he felt someone squeeze his hand and was met with a voice of an angel. "Neal?"

A smile tugged at his lips and he tried to form her name but his throat was dry and no words could form. _Emma._

He slowly blinked his eyes open, the light less bright than before but still bright enough to hurt his eyes. He winced again, blinking slowly as his eyes adjusted. Once they did he took a look at his surroundings. A hospital?

He slowly turned his head to the left and he was met with the most beautiful sight. A smiling, hopeful Emma Swan. He slowly lifted his hand towards her and touched her face just to make sure she was real. Her smile widened as she leaned into his touch and he smiled too.

"Hey you." She murmured quietly against his palm.

He opened his mouth to speak but all that came out was a shallow squeak. He pressed his brow together and frowned. Emma smirked at the expression on his face and reached to the table behind her to grab a glass of water and handed it to him.

With a low grunt and a wince Neal slowly lifted himself up into a better seated position.

He took a large sip of water and then licked his lips, clearing this throat lightly before trying to speak. "Hey." His voice was hoarse and deeper than usual.

"Hey." She whispered again.

He smiled at her softly and then winced as a sharp pain ran up his side. "What happened?" He asked quietly. "Why am I here?"

Emma's face fell and she pressed her brow together. "You don't remember?"

He looked down at the blanket and tried to remember. "I remember...Tamara...she..." He clenched his jaw. "She lied to me." He whispered. "She shot me..." He closed his eyes and shook his head softly. "There was a portal..." He inhaled sharply and looked over at her. "Right?"

That very same portal has focused heavily in countless nightmares. When it wasn't a memory it was a new portal that he was being sucked into all over again. This could have been just another nightmare brought on by the shock and pain of being shot.

Emma pressed her lips together in a tight smile and nodded. "Yes there was."

"Okay..." He nodded once, not sure which option he would have liked better. "You saved me...pulled me out..." A smile tugged at his lips as he looked over to her, his eyes now shining warmly and the smile returned to her face. "You wouldn't let me go."

"Damn right." She nodded and very lightly poked at his chest. "You can't get away from me that easily again Neal Cassidy."

His smile grew into a grin. "You said you loved me."

Emma flushed and looked down for a moment, trying to hide her smile. She cleared her throat and nodded sternly as she looked back up at him but she couldn't stop smiling at the smile on his face.

"I was beginning to think you wouldn't remember that."

"Nah," He shook his head, reaching his hand over to grab hers. "That's something I'd never forget."

Ignoring all the voices that were telling her not to, Emma couldn't quite take it anymore. Carefully she leaned over him and very gently brushed her lips against his.

It only lasted a couple seconds and Neal was too weak still to really respond at all but when she pulled away the astonished look in his eyes was more than enough to satisfy her.

She sat carefully on the side of his bed, resting her hand lightly across his chest, feeling his heart beating beneath her palm. "You scared me, you know? I thought I was going to lose you again."

Neal smiled up at her softly. "Emma...I hope you know there is not a power in this world or any other that could take me from you again."

Emma swallowed thickly and her breath caught as she once again leaned in to kiss him. This time he did respond, very weakly but he was there and his hand slowly lifted to rest on the back of her head, holding them close.

His ability to breathe still wasn't up to par and they soon parted, Emma resting her forehead lightly on his. "Tell me if you want me to stop." She whispered.

She could practically hear his smile and his grip on her head tightened ever so gently. "I never want you to stop."

Emma smiled softly and she stayed there with him until the nurses came to increase the dose on his pain medication which put him right to sleep. And even then, she watched him sleep until Mary Margaret came in to take her home.

She smiled over at him one last time, happy in the knowledge that he was alive and he was hers.


End file.
